Rafa Benitez – A FINAL VIEW

Rafa Benitez is close to finishing his worst season as Liverpool manager. After such a campaign it is not only fair but necessary to ask the big questions. For example: what has contributed to this year’s regression? Who is to blame? Is it the manager’s fault? But what is more important than the questions themselves is a sober, representative analysis of them.

I think that Benitez is an easy man for the English press to dislike. His impersonal managerial style, ruthlessness with regards to player roles within his formation (employing Gerrard wide midfield in much of 05/06 a case in point), and a tactical acumen perhaps more appreciated in foreign shores all contribute to a less-than-flattering media portrait. On many occasions the epithet ‘lucky’ has preceded the utterances of his name with media commentators levelling three criticisms in his direction: his 2005 Champions League success was with an ‘inherited’ team, his transfer activity has exhibited terrible judgment, and that his tactics are either costly (zonal marking) or too negative.

The first claim can only bear any weight due to Carragher and Gerrard. The truth is however that Carragher only became the stalwart he is now because Benitez moved him into the centre of defence and Gerrard, I’d argue, has become a better player under Benitez (as mentioned here). Furthermore I think it would be short sighted and naively nostalgic to suggest that Reina, Carragher, Agger, Johnson, Kuyt, Benayoun, Mascherano, Gerrard and Torres are not an improvement on Dudek, Finnan, Cisse, Traore, Diouf, Baros et al.

Benitez’s transfer activity has had its flaws fixated on heavily in the media. Consider the purchase and hasty sale of Robbie Keane (a large portion of the fee recouped) and the attention it garnered in comparison to a Shevchenko or a Veron. All managers get it wrong and Benitez is no different but he certainly has had his hits (Reina, Mascherano, Alonso, Torres) underplayed and his misses (Keane, Riera, Voronin, Pennant, Morientes are some that stand out) augmented. As for this season, Johnson offers the team a much needed attacking option from full back and, though he has made mistakes this term, is young enough to learn the positional awareness required to be a good defender. Any judgment on Aquilani must wait until the player has had an uninterrupted run of games and, while we may reprimand a manager for purchasing a long term injury, what we cannot do is prematurely brand the player a flop.

The discussion on Benitez’s tactics is indicative of the critical bias that pervades media commentary. Zonal marking is a glaring example of this; Liverpool consistently boast a stubborn defence and concede less than most teams in the league from set pieces yet when a mistake is made the reactionary defensive experts on Match of the Day castigate ‘the system’. The fact that man marking is an alternative does not mean it must be employed – looking over a long enough time period shows that Liverpool are successful exponents of zonal marking.

Finally the argument that Benitez’s style is too defensive, too negative, is an aesthetic judgment that should temper the necessity to win alongside a need to entertain; a winning fan base is entertained. Last season there were no attacks on the team’s tactics (they scored the most in the league) because the crucial difference is they were winning matches. I do think that Liverpool are prone to being overly cautious (especially this year: see here) but isn’t this discipline and defensive rigidity the very reason that they, under Benitez, have performed to a consistently high level in two legged Champions League affairs (two finals, a semi final and a quarter final)? Is the manager perhaps doing the best he has with what’s available, hence the focus on being defensively sound instead of attempting an overtly attacking game?

I think it would be a mistake to blame Rafa Benitez unanimously for Liverpool’s terrible campaign: Gerrard has had his worst season on record, Torres has been frustratingly sidelined, and the club’s financial descent coupled with an unforgiving media that have a tendency to side against him has all taken a cumulative toll. My criticism of Benitez this year would be that his lack of man-management has at times cost him. When players have needed to be inspired to perform, to find their best on an afternoon where everything seems hopeless, there has been no indication that the manager has offered anything (of course this is purely speculative from my part).

When Gerrard is off form and Torres is unavailable other players need to maximise their output and it just hasn’t materialised this year. I would also argue that last season the team overachieved with many players doing exactly what has been lacking this year: playing beyond their means. The judgment is not an attempt to slander but rather a curious observation on the psychology of confidence in the professional game. Barring Alonso the team is largely unchanged yet the output of its players has markedly decreased since a mentally taxing previous year. The question of whether sacking Benitez is the right course of action leads me to reject the notion completely. This is a proven manager, not a ‘lucky’ manager, who broke the stranglehold of Madrid and Barcelona in La Liga by twice becoming Champions with Valencia (and a Uefa Cup to boot). And since coming to Anfield the club has won a Champions League (competed again for the crown two years later) and, twelve months ago, accumulated enough points to win the league in most years. One bad season cannot change these facts. The reaction to one bad season however can steer the club either to failure, or success.

Not a bad article with some reasoned points, however for some time the “expert pundits” have been under the same illusion that you seem to suffer from. Liverpool don’t play zonal marking they employ part man to man and part zonal just like most of the other teams do.

Dave
5 years ago

Good lord, a rational, intelligent, balanced and well-thought out piece.
You’ll not last long on here!

YNWA
5 years ago

Spot on!!! and well done.The minority, calling for Rafa to go, need to snap out of it and, realise that we have one of the top 5 managers in the world!!!!!.

Bob
5 years ago

Spot on mate, all the doubters should ask themselves one question why has Rafa come under this unprecedented attack from pundits and press is it that they all love liverpool or is it that they see Rafa as the eventual threat to Man U I think the answer is not difficult do you.

TOTO
5 years ago

You have it spot on. Thanks for this the article. I am sure that the true liverpool fans will distinguish that the issues leading to lower thanpar performance cannot be loaded on RB. He definitely needs our support

Anthony Williams
5 years ago

The owners would have to shoulder most of the blame as their off the field problems seem to have creeped onto the pitch.
Benitez is a good manager, I reckon up until now he has put up with the owners for the sake of his team and its fans but I doubt he will be there next term.

Brandon Davis
5 years ago

Agree with most of your points, good article.

For me the season did not kick off well and we have been chasing ever since. Why did we not start well ? Rafa did not get the players that both he and the team were expecting. Without those key roles filled, it created strain on the plans Rafa had.

Also the media tend to bang on about injuries at Arsenal, and United, but Liverpool has had a heap of players out injured for periods of time.

Don’t blame a poor season just on Rafa, there were players, owners, media and financial issues that hampered us too.

The Ballad of GS
5 years ago

Great balanced view. I 100% agree with the observation of Benitez: a very good manager but one who appears to lack man-management skills (Riera’s outburst seems to highlight that).

His high turnover of players suggests he could have done better on the team building front, but given other managerial options that could take over at Liverpool, he still seems the best bet to push Liverpool forward to a title.

Daylight Robbery
5 years ago

Spot on although I fear that the malaise has run deeper and Benitez will struggle to continue with the dressing room no longer behind him. Torres has been unequivocal in his support of Benitez in the past but that relationship also appears to have broken down – evidence of his poor management that you allude to.

Overall, I believe his legacy will be that he restored Liverpool to Europe’s elite with a record over his tenure that no other manager can match – yet ultimately underperformed in the league. In the context of the mess that Houllier left us in, it has been a good but far from great reign

KALEB
5 years ago

the disgraceful stench at lfc tht is rafa benitez must go. All you deluded “fans” can send as many emails as you like, but the fact remains rafa is not adaptable, he has been worked out by every team in europe, to the point where even Reading ca beat us. He has to go. If rafa stays, we are setting ourselves up to drift furthur away from winning anything.
IN RAFA WE RUST